INDEPENDENTREFERENCEGSGS Pay TablesWhat the federal pay tables mean 2026 edition
Effective January 2026

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  1. GS pay scale 2026
  2. States
  3. Kentucky

58 locality pay areasPage last changed 2026-10-07

Kentucky GS pay scale 2026: the 2 locality pay areas in the state

In 2026 a GS-12 step 5 in Kentucky is paid $105,663 in Cincinnati-Wilmington-Maysville, OH-KY-IN and $101,443 in the rest of the state, which is on the Rest of U.S. rate.

Spread at GS-12 step 5

$4,220

Goes furthest

$110,793At U.S. prices, in Cincinnati, OH.

Against Rest of U.S.

+$4,220over $101,443

Which areas cover Kentucky, and what each pays

GS-12 step 5 in 2026 in each area that covers Kentucky, what it buys at national average prices (BEA price level, U.S. = 100) and how many of the state’s 120 counties it covers; the county of the duty station decides (how that works). Source: the OPM 2026 General Schedule table of each area — Salary Table 2026-CIN (Cincinnati, OH), Salary Table 2026-RUS (Rest of U.S.).
Locality pay areaLocality payOn paperPrice levelWhat it buysCounties here
Cincinnati-Wilmington-Maysville, OH-KY-IN21.93%$105,66395.4$110,79313
Rest of U.S.17.06%$101,443——107
Counties of Kentucky in each locality pay area, as OPM’s 2026 definitions list them; the county of the duty station decides (how that works).
Locality pay areaCounties
Cincinnati, OHBoone County, Bracken County, Campbell County, Carroll County, Fleming County, Gallatin County, Grant County, Kenton County, Lewis County, Mason County, Owen County, Pendleton County, Robertson County
Rest of U.S.all other counties of Kentucky (107)

Federal jobs in Kentucky, area by area

35,220 federal civilian jobs in Kentucky in 2025, 1.77% of all jobs in the state, 1,112 fewer than in 2024, down 3.06%, by the locality pay area of the worksite county; every federal pay system counted. The share is of the 33,773 jobs BLS places in a county. BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, 2025. The state total BLS publishes differs from the sum of its county rows by 6 jobs, from rounding of annual averages. Sources and caveats.
Locality pay areaFederal jobs, 2025Share, %Change from 2024
Rest of U.S.29,07586.1−996
Cincinnati, OH4,69813.9−113
No county reported1,453——

Average pay per federal job in Kentucky, overtime included, was $86,888 in 2025, the second-lowest of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Of the jobs placed in a county here, 86.1% are on the Rest of U.S. rate, the fifth-highest share of the 35 states with such jobs and more than one area.

Every grade at step 5 in Kentucky

Annual rates in U.S. dollars at step 5; ▲ marks a cell cut to the $197,200 statutory ceiling. For any other step, the pay calculator finds the area from a ZIP code.
GradeCincinnati-Wilmington-MaysvilleRest of U.S.
GS-131,20129,954
GS-233,96732,611
GS-338,29136,762
GS-442,98241,265
GS-548,08846,167
GS-653,60451,463
GS-759,56857,188
GS-865,96763,332
GS-972,86469,954
GS-1080,23577,030
GS-1188,15984,638
GS-12105,663101,443
GS-13125,648120,629
GS-14148,479142,549
GS-15174,648167,672

Where else these areas reach

Locality pay areas are lists of counties and ignore state lines: inside one area a move across a state line does not change pay (how that works; every state and the areas in it).
AreaCounties hereAlso covers
Cincinnati, OH13Indiana, Ohio